Leaving Las Vegas
by Miku Siran
Summary: When Catherine returns to an old flame, what will Grissom do? And what happens when he hasn't changed and she needs Gil? Will he turn away from her or will he be there for her during her darkest hour? Grillows! COMPLeTED!
1. He Said He's Changed

Leaving Las Vegas

Chapter One- He Said He's Changed

What happens to Grissom when Catherine decides to return to an old flame?

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing in CSI.

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Catherine arrived at work a little later than usual, looking like a mess. She didn't greet anyone when she walked in, which earned raised eyebrows from Warrick and Nick. "What did you eat?" Greg piped up. Catherine glared at him and Nick elbowed him in the ribs, shaking his head. Catherine didn't answer. "Is Grissom in his office?" she asked, trying hard to control her onslaught of emotions. Sara nodded quickly, a little frightened of Catherine in her emotional state. "Thanks." She muttered and headed out, leaving the rest of the team confused. "What's gotten into her?" Warrick wondered.

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Catherine walked into Grissom's office without knocking. He didn't need to look to know it was her. He looked up and as usual his heart skipped the beat at the sight of the strawberry blonde standing before him. "What's up Cath?' he asked, then stopped when he caught sight of her tearful eyes. He quickly stood up to stand beside her and wrap her in a hug. To his surprise, she pulled away. "Ed called me." She stated plainly. "He said he changed and he lives in Miami. He's working at this company now and off his drug habit." Grissom was already shaking his head. "You can't be serious about this Catherine. Remember last time?" he reminded her. He couldn't believe that jerk still had a hold on Catherine's heart and part of him was jealous. Catherine's eyes brimmed with tears. "But shouldn't I give him a second chance? I mean he is Lindsay's father and she needs a dad in her life." She reasoned, not only with Grissom but with herself. It wasn't fair for her daughter to grow up without a father and with a mother who worked as much as she did.

Grissom placed his hands on her shoulders. Every nerve in his body screamed at him to tell Catherine that Ed was bad news, but looking at the grief in her eyes, he held his tongue. She still cared for him and it would be good for Lindsay to see her father. "Go meet him, Cath." He said softly. It tore him apart to tell Catherine to see another man, but maybe it would be for the best. "Find out if he's changed and then we'll see from there." Catherine looked up at him with soft eyes. "I hope he has, Gil. I really hope he has."

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Lindsay was ecstatic at the thought of meeting her father. She had been three when the divorce happened. Catherine watched her daughter, the light of her life, with soft eyes. Even though Ed had never been the greatest husband, he had given her one thing, Lindsay, her only daughter. She smiled at the little girl, who was trying to pack everything except the kitchen sink. Catherine reached over to pat the little girl on the head. "Easy squirt. We'll be there for a week, not a year." She said smiling. Lindsay responded with a toothy grin of her own. "I think I got everything Mommy." She said. Catherine ruffled her daughter's red hair that was just a few shades darker than her own. "Alright, I think I hear Gil's car." She said.

Grissom caught sight of the red headed girl first before he spotted her mother. The little girl dove into the backseat of the car with a bright smile, so much like her mother's. "Hey Uncle Gil, can you drive fast to the airport?" she asked. Grissom laughed. "If I wanna get arrested Butterfly." Catherine opened the trunk and jumped back at the sight of Grissom's bugs. "Hey Gil. I think you got a little junk in your trunk." She called a little disgusted. He got out of the car. "Oh I forgot I had them here. He quickly moved them into the backseat and Lindsay moved away with a frightened look on her face. "What are those?" she asked with big eyes. Grissom started to explain the rarity and habitat of every single one of his bugs when Catherine clapped a hand over his mouth. "Easy Bugboy." She said. "Make sure the lid is on tight." He responded by waving a jar in front of her face. She groaned and continued shoving suitcases in the trunk.

After both the suitcases were in the car and every bug was accounted for and securely locked in their boxes, Catherine slid into the passenger seat. Grissom started the engine and drove slowly, not wanting the drive to end. He peaked to her side every once in a while just to gaze at her. He ran a red light and car horns beeped at him. "Shit." He muttered, then blushed knowing full well that Catherine didn't approve of cussing in front of her eight year old daughter, even though she had a colorful language herself. "Sorry." He said, getting a smile from the woman seated beside him. It was enough to elevate him to the highest mountaintop.

He dropped them off at the airport and Catherine thanked him and pecked him on the cheek. "Call me when you get there." He called after them. Catherine waved and winked, Lindsay bounced up and down, waving. He smiled to himself. There they go, the two most important women in the world. He wished them a safe trip and hoped that Catherine would come back to him. He wanted to be brave and tell her, but he couldn't. He gazed at her retreating back. He loved her.

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Hope you like that! Please R&R so I know whether or not I should continue.


	2. Not What He Seems

Chapter Two- Not What He Seems

Alright Thanks to CissaMalfoy for her review. The reviews were rather disappointing but that's okay because I like this story and if at least one person likes it I will continue it. Thanks girl for being so nice!

Disclaimer: I wish I owned something.

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Catherine and Lindsay arrived in Miami late. Lindsay was grouchy and Catherine wasn't feeling too peppy either. She took off her sunglasses and crossed her arms. Lindsay did the same in perfect imitation of her mother. Catherine smiled down at her little girl. Then heard her name being called, she turned to spot Ed walking toward her. She gaped at him in shock. He didn't seem like the same man in a snappy suit with his appearance neat and put together. "Ed!" she exclaimed, actually happy to see him. They embraced quickly and let go. "You look great Catty." He said smiling, using his personal nickname for her. Then he spotted the little red head standing shyly behind her and clinging onto her pants. "Squirt!" he exclaimed, reaching down to hug Lindsay. Lindsay responded with a quick hug and moved behind her mother again. Catherine made a face. "Lindsay, this is your father." Lindsay just nodded. Catherine glanced warily at Ed, wondering what his temper was like nowadays quickly explaining. "She's just shy." Ed gave her a charming smile. "I don't mind." He responded. "These things take time." He led them away, keeping the conversation lively.

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Grissom wasn't doing anything. That was a shocker. He wasn't doing paperwork, or investigating a new case. He was just sitting there, staring at a picture on his desk. It was a picture of him, Lindsay, and Catherine a year ago at Lindsay's soccer game. They were all beaming. He touched Catherine's face. His mind couldn't help but travel to Miami, where Catherine was. He wondered why she was doing, what Ed and she were talking about. His phone rang. He didn't answer. After four rings, Catherine's voice came over the machine. He scrambled to pick it up. "Catherine!" he exclaimed a little too happily. He heard her laugh across the line. "Happy to hear from me Gil?" she teased. "Nah not really." He said playing along. She laughed. It was the sweetest sound he had ever heard. "Where are you guys?" he asked. She paused as a wave of static crossed the line. "At Ed's. Lindsay's checking out our room. She's beat from the plane ride. Wouldn't stop bouncing the whole ride, but as soon as she got here and saw Ed, she clamped right up." She said, straightening out a teddy bear. Grissom smiled. "I hope you guys have a good time." He said to her. "Yep." She replied. "Talk to you later." "Yep." He replied, smiling at the sound of laughter from both Catherine and Lindsay as they suddenly engaged in a pillow fight. He hung up with a smile on his face. Catherine always had this affect on him.

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Ed heard the laughter from the upstairs guest bedroom, Catherine's that rang softly through the halls and Lindsay's little girly giggle. He tapped his fingers together, his mind calculating. Catherine was in the money again, just like before. He needed it. He had to get it. More laughter, he wanted to smother both of them just to shut them up, but held himself back. He had Catherine in the palm of his hand, but Lindsay. She would be harder to sell. He sat back, calculating how he could fool them both.

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I hope you enjoyed this. Sniff sniff…please review if you want this to continue. Thanks!


	3. I'm Moving to Miami

Chapter Three- I'm Moving to Miami

Thanks to CissMalfoy and estrelitalovesSVU for reviewing and allowing me to continue this story. I feel special!

Disclaimer: It's not fair that I don't own anything.

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Catherine and Ed were sitting in the living room, talking softly with glasses of wine between them. Lindsay was asleep upstairs and the pillows were all over the floor. Catherine took a sip.

"So Ed what do you do now?' she asked, smiling.

He flashed her a winning smile. "Oh I work for a business."

Catherine raised her eyebrows. "I never pictured you as a businessman Ed." She admitted.

He reached across to take her hand. "A lot has changed Catty." He said softly, bringing up one hand to touch her on the cheek, feeling her flush under his touch.

Catherine lowered her eyes and took another sip of wine to calm her nerves. "Yeah a lot of things have." She agreed, after she composed herself.

He moved in closer and gently stroke her cheek. "So have I Catherine." He said softly in her ear. He leaned and gently kissed her.

Catherine didn't know what to think. Ed was here, kissing her, he had changed. His home, his appearance, everything proved it. He was the father of her child, her only daughter, the one she would do anything for. This was her chance to start over and let her daughter have a father, a family, like she had had up until she was sixteen. With that in mind, she kissed him back.

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Grissom was counting down the days until Catherine returned. Work wasn't as interesting without her sarcastic jokes and bright- eyed smiles that never stopped thrilling him. Nick knocked on his door.

"Uh…Grissom why do you want a background check on Ed?" he asked.

Grissom swatted him away. "None of your business." He said.

Nick raised his eyebrows and sat down across from him, careful to move away from the bugs. "It is my business when I'm the one doing the check." He said.

Grissom turned to face him. "It doesn't matter." He said. "I was just making sure Catherine doesn't get in over her head."

Nick grinned. "Trust me, Catherine can take care of herself. She's a big girl." He said, starting out the door. "I'll go and get the DNA for the Setter case." He ran quickly out.

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Outside Nick met Warrick and Sara in the hall. "Okay he loves her." Nick said.

Warrick shook his head. "She don't love him." He replied.

Sara slapped him on the arm. "How the hell would you know that?' she demanded.

"Fifty bucks says that they end up together." Nick said.

Sara laughed. "Fifty bucks says that they get together before Catherine gets back." She challenged.

Warrick shook his head again. "I think Catherine is going to stay with Ed and Grissom's gonna get a broken heart." He said with a shrug.

Sara rolled her eyes. "Why do you always have to be the pessimistic?' she asked. Before he had a chance to answer, Greg trotted up to them.

"Jeez you guys look friendly." He said. "Anyway, I couldn't help but overhear and I wanna make a bet." He grinned at the amused grins from everyone. "I bet that Catherine's going to stay with Ed and then come back and go to Grissom." He exclaimed.

Everyone was silent for a moment, then burst out laughing.

Nick patted him on the back. "Sure Greg. Sure." He said, walking away, followed by a chuckling Sara and Warrick. Greg sighed and walked in the other direction.

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One Week Later

"Mommy, I don't want to move to Miami." Lindsay whined at her mother.

Catherine rubbed her temples. "Honey, it's only for a little while, so you can get to know your father." She said, trying her best to be patient. "Don't you want that?"

"No!" she screamed. "I don't like him."

Catherine raised her eyebrows and turned to face her daughter, groaning from the uncomfortable position she was sitting in. She hated planes. "Why honey? Where did that come from?" she asked, visibly concerned.

Lindsay was pouting. "I don't like him." She stated stubbornly, dangerously sounding like Catherine in the same state.

Catherine took a breath. "Honey, he's your father. You should get to know him before you judge." She said softly to her daughter, stroking her hair. "Give him a chance. He's changed a lot since the last time I saw him."

Lindsay buried her face in her mother's chest. "I love you Mommy." She said her voice muffled. Catherine smiled and kissed the top of her head. "I love you too honey."

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Grissom was there to pick them up. He saw Catherine walk out of the airport, carrying a sleeping Lindsay, and trying to balance two suitcases rolling behind her. He hurried out of the car to help her. At the sight of him, Catherine smiled gratefully and pecked him on the cheek as a greeting. His skin flushed and he quickly covered up his blunder by taking the suitcases.

On the car, Catherine was deep in thought. Her decision was a split second one and she was starting to have doubts. Her talk with Lindsay had caused it but she couldn't back off now. If she didn't give Ed another chance, she might regret it for the rest of her life. Grissom noticed her quietness.

"What's on your mind?" he asked, sneaking a glance at Catherine, then quickly turning back to the road before he got too distracted.

"Hmm?" Catherine replied. She was still in a daze.

"I mean you're more quiet than usual. I would think that you would be bubbling about your trip." Grissom pointed out. "What's going on?" he pried gently, reaching for her hand before he could stop himself.

Catherine felt an overwhelming sense of grief. She would be leaving him, but she decided to be blunt. "I'm moving to Miami." She said plainly, turning to look at Grissom with tearful blue eyes.

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This is a different format than I usually write in and it was thanks to the tip of estrelitalovesSVU. Thanks a lot of helping me out! R&R for more!


	4. Does She Have Any Idea?

Chapter Four- Does She Have Any Idea?

Thanks to El Gringo Loco, CissaMalfoy, soliz, and Nisha14 for their reviews. Only reason why I'm still writing this.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters.

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"WHAT!" Grissom yelled at Catherine, whirling tostare at her. The car swerved to one side and Catherine's head hit the side of the car.

"Mom!" Lindsay cried, being jerked awake and seeing her mom's head slam against the car window.

"Catherine!" Grissom exclaimed just as worried. He reached over to have her slap his hand away.

"I'm fine." She said forcefully. "Just a little bump." She turned back to check on her daughter. "You okay squirt?" Getting a nod from Lindsay.

"I'm so sorry Catherine.' Grissom said frantically.

Catherine turned to smile at him. "It's okay Grissom. I probably dropped the bomb shell on you a little too fast. We can talk about this later." She reasoned, just as softly.

Grissom nodded. The rest of the drive went by in silence. Grissom parked the car in front of Catherine's house. She paused for a moment before getting out. Grissom got out of the car to help the two girls with their suitcases. Lindsay ran into the house and went straight into her room to check on her teddy bears.

"She doesn't want to move does she?" he asked Catherine as they made their way into the living room.

Catherine sat down. "Coffee?' she asked. Grissom shook his head. "No hope of you changing the subject is there?"

Grissom smiled. "No, you should know that by now."

Catherine sat down across from him. "I think I should give Ed another chance. He's changed. He works for a producing company. He's got a nice place; he's put together and he's treating me a lot better." She said softly. "I don't know what's gotten into me. Before this I would've never even considered seeing him, but now, it's like he's the same guy I met when we first met."

Grissom shook his head. "I think he's bluffing." He said matter-of-factly.

Catherine shook her head. "The Eddie I knew wouldn't be able to keep his temper in control for more than a few minutes. This guy was different." She said.

Grissom gazed at her, wishing she would see what he was feeling, but keeping a close eye on his own reactions. "Lindsay doesn't want to move." He pointed out.

Catherine sighed. "I didn't get to finish my sentence." She said. "It's only for the summer when Lindsay's out of school."

Grissom breathed a sigh of relief. Then visibly brought himself back together. "Well I guess that's alright. But how is the lab gonna run without the redhead bossing people around?" he teased.

She slapped him on the arm. "You guys will just have to live without the redhead for a month or two." She retorted playing along.

Grissom got up to go to work. "Well when you guys leaving?"

Catherine shrugged. "In a few weeks, enough for me to get some money out of the bank and get my vacation situated then we'll go." She said. "Not to mention I don't want to leave any cases open before I leave again."

Grissom suddenly went and wrapped her in a hug. "I've missed you." He said softly and then walked out rather quickly.

Catherine was a little surprised. "Grissom." She called after him. He turned for a moment. "I missed you too." She said smiling. He waved and walked out. She sat down on the couch and closed her eyes. Her feelings for Ed were still strong, but something made her heart beat faster when she was close to Grissom. _I'm losing my mind. _She thought, making her way upstairs to check on Lindsay.

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Grissom was observing his bug collection in his office, as Sara was paying off every other member of the squad. "Okay. All or nothing you guys." She said. "They get married."

Nick scoffed. "Psh…don't you think you've lost enough money for one day?" he said, grinning widely.

Sara slapped him on the arm. "Woman's intuition." She said stubbornly.

Warrick shrugged. "It's your cash." He pointed out.

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The next few weeks passed by quickly. Too quickly for Grissom. It was time for Catherine and Lindsay to fly back to Miami. Grissom picked them up at their house and Lindsay ran out to meet him.

"Hey Butterfly." He called to her as she opened the passenger seat and dove in.

"Hi Uncle Gil." She said cheerfully. "Mommy's inside still packing."

Grissom smiled. "Let's go in and help her." He suggested, getting out of the car and then opening the door for Lindsay and helping her out of the car.

"Uncle Gil, Daddy said last night that when I get back to Miami, he would take Mommy and I out to the beach and we would go fishing." She said happily, running back toward the house.

Grissom didn't share her enthusiasm. He was busy wondering why Eddie would suddenly come back into their lives again after years of separation. He didn't like it. He and Eddie never got along, sometimes Grissom wondered if Eddie knew Grissom's feelings for the strawberry blonde they both had their eye set on. He snapped back into reality when Lindsay tugged at his hand. He quickly composed himself and followed her into the house.

Catherine was busy throwing and shoving things into an oversized suitcase. A hair curler was lying on the floor and hangers were everywhere. Not noticing a thing, She flung something at the door when she flung her coat into the suitcase, which Grissom narrowly dodged. He picked it up. It was her cell phone.

Catherine was now scrambling around muttering her breath. Lindsay crawled onto the bed and faced her mother. "Mom, is something wrong?' she asked curiously.

"No honey, I just can't find my cell." Catherine replied forcing a smile. She opened up her suitcase again and started digging through it.

"You mean this?" Grissom questioned from the doorway, holding up the phone.

Catherine reached over and grabbed it from him. "Where did you find that?" she asked, rezipping up her suitcase and heaving it onto the floor.

Grissom shrugged. "You flung it at me." He said simply. He smiled at her, getting an annoyed glance in return.

Lindsay hopped of the bed. "Ready to go?" she asked looking at both Grissom and Catherine.

Catherine reached down to ruffle her daughter's hair. "Yeah." She said just as Grissom thought. _No._

He sighed softly as he led the girls to the car and put the suitcases in the trunk. Catherine slid into the front seat beside him and he found himself half staring at her the whole time. She was something else. Her story never ceased to amaze him and how she got her life together after Eddie. Maybe Nick was right. She was big girl and she would get through it. She had once, but something was nagging at Grissom. Something told him this would end a lot worse than the first time around.

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It was raining when they reached the airport. Grissom decided to go with them into check-in and security check. Catherine had her gun at her waist. She almost always carried it except in court and in her home. The alarm went off. She groaned as she handed the gun to the security guard.

"I work for the CSI." She said plainly and visibly annoyed.

"You can't carry it as a passenger on the plane." He said to her, void of any emotion.

Catherine was getting frustrated. "Look, there are people who don't like me because of my job and I need it for protection."

"She's right. She needs one to keep her and her daughter safe." Grissom put in.

Lindsay was yawning. She didn't understand all the fuss over her mother's gun. Her mother always had but never shot it. To Lindsay's knowledge that was.

The security guard shook his head. "I'm sorry but you can't carry it with you." He said again.

Catherine stomped her foot. "Then tell me where the hell do I put it?" she demanded.

"Not my problem." The security guard said.

Catherine groaned loudly, muttering some very foul language under her breath.

Grissom took the gun. "I'll take it back to the lab and put it in my office." He offered.

Catherine nodded. "I guess that's my only choice. I don't have time to go home and lock it up in my bedroom." She said softly, her temper diminishing rapidly.

"Boarding call for flight 598. Destination Miami." A robotic voice said over the intercom.

Catherine took a breath. "That's our flight." She said softly, turning to face Grissom.

Lindsay grabbed her mother's hand and reached up to hug Grissom. "Bye Uncle Gil, promise I'll e-mail." She said smiling.

Grissom smiled. "Bye Butterfly. You better or else I'll have to hunt you down." He teased, patting her head.

Catherine looked at him with a grateful look in her blue eyes. "Hey Gil. Thanks a lot for everything you've done for us. Giving us rides and looking after my house and everything." She thanked sincerely.

Grissom reached over and pulled her into a tight hug. "Catherine come back to me safely." He whispered in her ear, stroking her strawberry blonde hair.

Catherine was taken back. She wrapped her arms around him. "You bet I will." She murmured, patting his back gently.

When they separated, Catherine reached for Grissom's hand and gave it a squeeze. "Don't scare Greg too bad when I'm away." She said with a smile.

Grissom returned her smile with such soft eyes in his brown eyes, Catherine's heart skipped at beat. She thought she caught a light of adoration in them, but she reasoned that it was just a trick of light. She gave his hand a final squeeze, before taking Lindsay's hand and leading her onto the plane.

Grissom watched them leave with a forlorn look in his eyes. Lindsay was the light of his heart and Catherine was his heart. He didn't want them to go. He hated good-byes. He stood their even after they were long gone, wondering why he didn't have the courage to tell Catherine was he was feeling. _Does she have any idea? _He wondered as he turned away, a tear trickling down his cheek.

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I'm so glad that I'm getting more feedback from my awesome readers. This way I know what people like so thanks a lot! Hope you enjoyed it! More on the way!


	5. Back to Vegas, Baby

Chapter Five- Back to Vegas, Baby

Thanks to CissaMalfoy, soliz, and Just.Let.Go.x3 for their reviews. This wouldn't be up without you guys!

Disclaimer: Love this show, but don't own it…sadly.

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Catherine and Lindsay arrived in Miami and were glad to find it was sunny and warm. Lindsay ran ahead of her mother to her father's arms. "Daddy!" she exclaimed. Catherine pulled the suitcases behind her and smiled. It was so nice to see her daughter so happy. Eddie came over to help her with the suitcases.

"How are you Catty?" he asked softly, kissing her on the cheek.

"Awesome, but we better get going." She answered with a smile. "Lindsay wants to go to the beach tonight."

Eddie swung his daughter onto his shoulders. "Then by all means we will go to the beach." He said smiling.

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One Month Later

Eddie was quite pleased with himself. He had tricked them both. Lindsay and Catherine. Catherine was easy. He gave her a piece of what he used to be when they first met. The charm and the smooth talking was enough to fool her, despite the brains she had as a CSI. Lindsay was a little easier, but patience had prevailed. He them both in the palm of his hand. He had checked Catherine's will. She was leaving everything to her daughter. Her job allowed her to receive quite a lot of money and some was still left over from her dancing days and he knew that if Catherine were to have an unfortunate 'accident', then everything would go to Lindsay, who was also his daughter. He just had to get close enough to get a chance to createthe accident.

He looked up at Catherine splashing water on a giggling Lindsay. They thoroughly annoyed him. Catherine used to be his type, before Lindsay. She had been a wild child and she had turned him on, but not anymore. She was too maternal, too good for his taste. He needed money for his next fix and his new girl, but for the moment, the amount he had was enough to keep up the illusion that he had changed for the better. His girlfriend knew about Catherine and Lindsay and was totally into helping him create Catherine's accident.

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Greg refused to venture out of the lab. Nick was getting annoyed. "Greg you have to come out sometime." He said through the door.

Greg shook his head. "Not until Grissom leaves. The dude's scaring the shit outta me." He answered from within.

"He's not here." Nick yelled through the door, making every other worker in the lab's head turn.

Greg poked a head out. "You sure?" he asked nervously glancing around. Grissom's had been in a bad mood ever since Catherine left and Greg was his favorite to take it out on. Greg stepped outside to see Grissom coming down the hall.

"Greg!" Grissom called before he could slip back into the lab. "I need these run through the fingerprint data base." He said hanging him a folder.

Greg nodded and sulked back into the lab, sending death glares at Nick, who was silently laughing.

Grissom ignored them both and headed straight to his office. He sat down and stared at the picture of Lindsay and Catherine on his desk. He smiled at it. "I love you Catherine." He murmured to it. "I love you so much and I love Lindsay too." He buried his face in his hands. _Why can't I tell her? _He wondered. What was so hard about it? He marked off another day on his calendar, a few more days and Catherine was going to come home.

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Eddie was asking Catherine out. "Cath, come on. Let's go out." He begged.

Catherine wasn't so sure. "Are you sure you want go down this road again?" she asked uncertainly.

"Catherine, I still love you." He murmured, looking at her with tearstained eyes. "I always did, I never stopped."

Catherine gave in. "Alright. Let's go out and talk." She said softly.

Eddie took her to the beach. He took her hand as they walked side by side.

"It's beautiful." She murmured staring at the open water that gently lapped at her ankles, enjoying the coolness of its touch.

"Not as beautiful as you." Eddie said, turning to face Catherine toward him. He leaned in and kissed her like the first night she had come to visit. Catherine didn't resist. When they came up for air, Eddie clasped her hand in his. "I want to move in with you, but I don't think living in Miami is such a good idea. Lindsay has her friends in school and you have your job. I think we should move back to Vegas baby." He whispered in her ear.

Catherine stared at him. "You want to start this again?" she asked softly, turning the idea over in her mind.

"If you let me." He said softly. "I want to be there to watch our daughter grow up and to be with you."

Catherine couldn't resist. She had a chance to make everything right again. "Sure." She answered, not even thinking it over. "Why not?" She gazed up at Eddie with a smile, not knowing what Eddie was really thinking.


	6. It Should've Been Him

Chapter Six- It Should've Been Him

Thanks to El Gringo Loco (I'm sorry that this is grillows but it was still swt of you to review ), CissaMalfoy, soliz, Daydreamer1127, sparkling-strawberries, myfairlady, and Just.Let.Go x3 for their reviews.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters.

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Grissom was on air. Ecstatic. Catherine was back. He nearly did a little dance. Finally after a long summer, Catherine was back home… where she belonged. Nick raised his eyebrow when Grissom walked past him.

"Hey Warrick, does Grissom look like he's dancing to you?" he asked, nudging his buddy in the ribs.

Warrick glanced at Grissom's retreating back. "Man, I think he's trying to, but it's a little scary."

Nick laughed. "I think I know why he's so happy."

"I can't say I'm not happy either. The redhead's coming back today." Warrick replied as the two of them got back to work.

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Catherine held Eddie's hand as they descended the plane. Lindsay was clinging onto her mother's other hand and they approached the car. Grissom's eyes grew dark when he spotted Eddie and felt his mood plummet. He nearly shot Eddie with his gun when he saw him bend down and kiss Catherine. He got out of the car.

"Gil!" Catherine exclaimed happily, wrapping him in a tight hug. "I've missed you."

Grissom didn't answer. He didn't trust himself to even open his mouth. He glared at Eddie from over Catherine's head.

Lindsay completely forgot about her father for the moment. "Uncle Gil!" she screamed, rocket launching herself into Grissom's arms.

"Hey Butterfly." He greeted, swinging her around, secretly glad that Lindsay had ignored her father for him.

Eddie cleared his throat, clearly sulking at the fact that he was being ignored. "Grissom right?" he asked.

Grissom nodded coldly. "Yeah." He answered, making it clear that he wasn't one of Eddie's fans.

Eddie smiled just as coldly and offered a hand. "Eddie." He said.

Grissom didn't shake it. "I know." He said turning away to help Catherine with the suitcases.

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One Month Later

"Eddie, can you please let me get to work?" Catherine demanded as Eddie kissed her over and over again.

Eddie didn't let go. "But can't you just call in sick?" he purred.

This was familiar territory and she wasn't about to go down that road again. "Eddie seriously, I need to get to work." She said firmly.

What had happened? She used to be wild and crazy and not mind if she was at all late. Now she couldn't even bear to think about the rest of the team handling a case without her. She shook the thought off her mind. She just didn't want to get fired.

Eddie let her go. "Fine." He seethed. "Make work your biggest priority. I doubt you care about anything other than that Grissom"

Catherine was taken back. "What?" she asked startled by his angle of attack. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Eddie was pissed off. "I can see the way he looks at you and you spend so much time working overtime, you think I can't tell?" he raged.

Catherine shook her head. "You're crazy." She stated plainly. "Absolutely insane."

Eddie grabbed her by the wrists. "Shut up." He shouted at her, throwing her back against the wall.

Catherine kicked him. "Let go of me you bastard and get the hell outta my house." She screamed back.

"Fine, but Lindsay's coming with me." Eddie said, pulling his voice down from a shout.

"Hell no." she yelled at him. "She's staying right here."

"Alone?" Eddie demanded. "She's only nine."

"My mom will watch her."

"That's not good enough. She needs a parent. Hell Catherine, you need a parent."

At this moment Lindsay ran down the stairs before her mother let Eddie have a piece of her mind. "Mom, I wanna go with Dad." She said, meeting her mother's eyes.

Catherine stared at her daughter. _What have I done wrong?_ She wondered. She took a sharp intake of breath. "Okay sweetie, but call me when you wanna come home." She said, trying to keep herself from crying that Lindsay had chosen her father over her.

Eddie picked up Lindsay. "You're never here and she's needs a better parent." He said, carrying the child out. "I'm gonna take her to an amusement park and then get a hotel room or something. I'm moving out for the time being, my friend will get me an apartment."

"Whatever." Catherine replied softly. She reached over and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "Have fun honey." She whispered, before Eddie took her out to the car.

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Catherine stormed into the office with dark rage in her eyes. Her pain had decreased and so her anger took over. All the interns shuffled out of the way, frightened that they would be the target of the redhead's rage. Greg noticed this and poked his head out of the lab.

"Cath what's wrong?" he asked.

Catherine shook her heads. "Nothing Greg." She said a little too sweetly. "I'm fine."

He let it go. He was afraid that if he pushed the issue, she would blow up in his face.

Catherine walked past everyone else getting nervous glances from Nick and Sara. Warrick tried to engage her but only got a dirty look in return. She walked right into Grissom's office.

He looked up and saw Catherine. "Hey." He said slowly, seeing the rage in her eyes that was also laced with grief.

Catherine tried to fight back tears. "She chose him over me." She stated plainly. "She chose him over me." And then broke down into a current of tears.

Grissom found himself by her side in a flash, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "Hey, it's okay." He said gently. "In no time at all she's gonna find out what Eddie's really like and she'll call her mommy and ask her to take her home."

Catherine took a shaky breath. "You're right. I'm overreacting." She said slowly. "I think I'm going to go and get on the wagon with that case."

She quickly walked out and Grissom didn't stop her. He had seen the bruises on her wrists and was wondering what had happened. He wished she felt what he felt. He turned back to his work. She couldn't see it. She was blinded by Eddie or at least by what he used to be. She wanted a family for Lindsay and would sacrifice everything for her daughter. Grissom just wished that the person to make things right shouldn't have been Eddie, it should've been him.

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Eddie left Lindsay in the car when he went outside to smoke a joint. She was amused by the music on the car. _Go me._ He thought, taking a snort and rejoicing at the wave of pleasure that rolled through him. He had given up his job because Catherine was so much easier than work. He didn't need her anymore. All he needed now was Lindsay. The foolish woman would do anything for the child and Eddie planned to use that to his advantage. As long as he was the center of Lindsay's affections then Catherine will follow. He pulled out his cell phone.

"Hey Vanessa." He purred into the phone. "I'm free for the day, though I got the midget with me. You wanna go for a ride and a some fun?" He smiled when he got the answer. Vanessa was the wild child that Catherine used to be. Out there and sexy. Catherine had grown up too much, not missing work for him anymore. He was tired of that. He wanted what he needed and if Catherine couldn't serve it up then Vanessa will.

"Lindsay come on, I've got a friend I need to pick up." He said, his voice a little raspy from the fix he had just had. He found it hard to think, but he didn't care. At least the drug felt good at the moment.

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Eddie's still an ass. So sad ain't it? O well, review and I'll update!


	7. Storm

Chapter Seven

Thanks to CissaMalfoy, sparkling-strawberries, Just.Leg.Go x3, soliz, and DrusillaBraun for their reviews.

Disclaimer: I don't own anyone.

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Grissom hurried down the hall, looking for Nick and Catherine. They were two of his best, both level threes and he needed his best on the team. He found Catherine first. She was in the empty meeting room with her head in her hands. He knew she was hurting and it hurt him, but he needed her on this case.

"Catherine.' He said gently and softly, coming up behind her and putting a hand on her shoulder. "I got a case and I need you on it."

Catherine lifted her head and furiously wiped away her tears. "Yeah I'm on it." She said quickly taking the file from his hand.

He didn't let go.

"Catherine maybe you need a break I can get Sara to take the case." He said with a trace of concern in his eyes.

Catherine shook her head. "I need this Gil. I need something to take my mind off things." She said firmly.

Grissom sighed and gave in. "Get Nick and head down to the address. Careful. The body's been there two weeks now." He said, rubbing her shoulders. "And Cath?"

She looked up and saw a hint of grief in Grissom's eyes.

"Be careful."

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The first thing that hit Nick was the smell. It was horrible. Catherine coughed beside him.

"O Lord." She breathed, wrinkling her nose and turning away.

Nick wasn't feeling much better. He handed her a lemon, which they both rubbed under their noses in attempt to block out the smell. It didn't work.

Catherine gave the body a soft, but firm poke. It just emitted some bubbles from the mouth. She grimaced. "Oh this is gross." She muttered, as she opened the victim's mouth to take a sample of DNA, cringing as she peered inside.

Nick wasn't doing much better. The decaying flesh was making fingerprint samples very difficult. He was good at hair and fiber analysis, but he didn't want to near the body's head. He forced himself to take a strand of hair.

Catherine had finished with her part of the analysis. She had looked for blood stains, but there were none. "Probably strangulation." She pointed out to Nick, then began to explore the room, letting Nick finish up with the body, since his special was hair and fibers.

She opened the closet to the room, just has her cell phone rang. The caller ID said Eddie. "Damn it I'm working." She yelled into the phone, before the line broke out due to the storm outside. Her phone rang again. "What the hell do you want?' she demanded, but froze when she heard the small terrified voice on the other line.

"Mommy!" Lindsay's voice cried over the static of the line. "Mommy please come and get me! The water's getting higher. Please Mommy!"

Catherine began to tremble from fear, partially her own, partially from the panic in her daughters voice. "Lindsay! Hang in there baby!" she yelled into the phone.

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DUN DUN DUN! OK R&R for more


	8. Broken Wing

Chapter Eight- Broken Wing

Thanks to Bart Simpson Rox, CissaMalfoy, soliz, Nisha14, myfairlady, DrusillaBraun, and sparkling-strawberries for their reviews!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

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Catherine drove as fast as she could through the blinding rain. "Lindsay hang in there!" she said desperately trying to give her daughter a sense of calmness over the phone.

"Mommy Hurry!" Lindsay screamed, panic laced in every fiber of her voice.

"I'm hurrying honey. Tell me what you passed." Catherine said, searching desperately for some sign of her little girl.

"We passed the castle." Lindsay said through tears.

_The tower._ Catherine thought. "Good Lindsay. Anything else?" she asked.

"We went through a fence." Lindsay recalled.

Catherine saw the fence with a giant hole in it. "I'm here Lindsay. I'm coming." Then the battery died.

Catherine leaped into the cold water and power stroked toward the sinking car. Lindsay was banging on the car window, screaming for her mother.

"Lindsay back away from the window!" Catherine yelled.

"NO!" she screamed her voice muffled from the glass in the window. "Mommy it's underwater!"

Catherine yanked on the door. It was locked. Child safety lock. _Damn_ she thought. She would have to break the window, but she couldn't with her daughter right under it. She had no choice. She took a breath and dove under.

"MOMMY!" Lindsay screamed when she saw her mother go under. "MOMMY!"

Catherine swan to the passenger side window of the driver's seat. She could see her daughter's legs kicking frantically trying to stay afloat. Only a small section of the car was left above water. She grabbed her gun from her waist and smashed it again the window, breaking it and wincing as a shard cut into her arm. She swam into the car and grabbed Lindsay, pulling her out.

They broke the surface gasping for air, Catherine's arms wrapped tightly around her daughter. They swam for the shore and Catherine pushed her daughter onto dry land before climbing out of the icy cold water herself. Lindsay was exhausted, mainly from fear. Catherine was feeling a sense of pure rage at her ex-husband. She quickly dialed Grissom's phone.

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Eddie was ready to punch through a wall. One mistake. One mistake and his whole plan was down the drain. He shouldn't have gotten high before seeing Vanessa. He should've know she would be high when she drove and would drive off a cliff. Why did he leave the girl in the car? Catherine would be furious. Charm and sweet words were going to help him anymore. If he knew Catherine she would never forgive him. He would have to take a different road. No matter what happened he would be Lindsay's guardian. Catherine would leave everything to Lindsay, but Eddie couldn't just drop in and murder Catherine. That would be too suspicious. He needed to gradually break her. He thought it over. He had no choice but to kill her, he just needed to know when and how. At the moment, however, he felt searing rage at his ex-wife. He grabbed his coat and went out to find her.

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Grissom ran every red light to get to Catherine's location. He saw that the ambulance had already arrived and so had Sara. Sara was watching the car being pulled out of the water. He looked around in panic, scared that something had happened to Catherine. He finally spotted. She was sitting on the bumper of the ambulance with Lindsay, both were wrapped in blankets. Someone had brought her a cup of coffee, which she was sipping slowly, listening intently to what her daughter was telling Detective Vega. He could faintly make out Lindsay's words, something about her father and pink-haired lady.

"Catherine!" he cried running toward her.

Her head shot up. "Gil." She breathed, and smiled as she felt his arms wrap around her in a tight hug.

"I was so scared that…" his voice trailed off, not wanting to speak the words that he had been dreading.

"Gil I'm okay. Lindsay's okay. We're both fine." Catherine reassured. She saw the car finally make it to the surface. "Lindsay Mommy's gonna help Sara with the crime scene, you stay here with Detective Vega." She said gently and in her motherly tone to her daughter.

Lindsay reluctantly let go of her mother's shirt, which was still soaking wet. Catherine kissed Lindsay on the top of her head, before following Grissom toward Sara.

"Hey Cath, you okay?" she asked.

Catherine nodded, slipping out of her blanket. "Yeah, what have we got?" she asked all business.

She regretted slipping out of the blanket. Doing so allowed her to have freedom of movement, but she was freezing. Her clothes were still wet and she had nothing to change into. Her teeth chattered despite her attempt to stop herself. Luckily, Grissom understood. He slipped out of his jacket and put it over her shoulders. She flashed him a grateful smile.

"Thanks." She said, moving to examine the car. She noticed a blue vial on the dash of the car. She picked it up with a gloved hand.

"I got something." She said as Grissom and Sara moved closer to glance at it.

"What is that? Drugs?" Sara asked.

"Knowing my husband…no doubt about it." Catherine said plainly and looking at the vial in her hand with a forlorn expression in her hand.

Grissom wanted to comfort her. Hold her, kiss her, talk to her, anything, but watch the grief flood her eyes, knowing there was nothing he could do. She wouldn't let him in and he couldn't break down the wall she had built around herself.

"Catherine you might wanna hand me that since you're not on this case." Sara said slowly.

Catherine glared at Sara. "What?' she asked as she whirled around to fix her gaze on Grissom, who lowered his eyes.

"I'm sorry Catherine, but procedure calls." He said, not wanting to see the anger that he knew would be in her eyes.

Catherine was hurt. Grissom didn't trust her to keep an open mind about this case. She couldn't be on the case that her own daughter was involved in. "Whatever." She said rather coldly, handing the vial to Sara roughly. She turned on her heel and walked briskly back to her daughter.

"Ready to go home?" she asked Lindsay gently.

Lindsay held out her arms for her mother to pick her up, something she hadn't done since she had been six. Catherine tenderly picked up her only child. She turned to find herself face to face with Grissom, the last person she wanted to talk to.

"Catherine let me give you a ride." He said imploringly.

She held up a hand. "No Gil, I can get myself home. Not to mention, Lindsay and I need some time by ourselves." She said rather standoffishly. With that she walked back to her car. Lindsay settled into the front seat, one hand still holding tightly to her mother. Catherine turned on the heat and put some soft music on the radio and drove away, leaving Grissom watching them go with a heavy heart.

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Lindsay was asleep by the time they got home. Catherine carried her daughter upstairs and into her bedroom. She dressed her sleeping child in her pj's and wrapped a blanket around her. She kissed Lindsay on the top of the head and slipped quietly out of the room.

Back in her own room, she hopped into the shower, feeling the warm water wash away the dirt on her, but winced when she saw the scar on her arm. That was going to be there for a while. She slipped out after a couple of minutes and pulled on sweats and a cami. From upstairs, she heard her front door being thrown open. She grabbed her gun off the bedside table and raced downstairs.

Eddie stormed into Catherine's house. "Come out bitch. We need to talk!" he yelled.

Catherine came down the stairs with her gun in hand. He was angry and high, Catherine was scared. She couldn't just shoot him thought.

"Drop the gun, Catherine. I'm just here to talk and apologize." Eddie said raising his hands.

Catherine put it down. "You have got hell to pay Eddie." She seethed.

He smiled which infuriated her even more. Her voice rose.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU LEAVE MY DAUGHTER…NO OUR DAUGHTER IN A SINKING CAR? WHY THE HELL WERE YOU DOING DRUGS IN FRONT OF HER?" she screamed.

Eddie covered the distance between them in three steps. He hit her across the face. "It's not my fault the kid wouldn't stop screaming." He stated coldly.

Catherine pushed him away from her. "SHE COULD HAVE DIED! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU, YOU SON OF A BITCH?" Catherine shrieked at him.

This time Eddie was angry. He was here to try one last time to play his game without hurting the bitch, but she wasn't done.

"I DON'T GIVE A DAMN IF YOU DATING SOME PINK HAIRED WHORE, BUT IF YOU PUT MY DAUGHTER IN DANGER, THEN THERE'S A FUCKING BIG PROBLEM. WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU NEEDLEDICK?" she ranted.

Eddie had heard enough. He grabbed her by the wrist and flung her against the wall. It was an easy thing to do since she didn't weight a lot. She let out a cry of pain, when she hit the wall. He wasn't done. He grabbed her by the hair and hit her across the face, yelling at her. He slammed her head against the staircase before throwing her down on the floor. He twisted her arm behind her and held her in that position. Catherine let another cry of pain as a white searing hot pain, shot through her body. He clapped his hand over her mouth.

"No one calls me that Catherine." He said bring his face close to her ear. "No one tries to take away what's mine either, understand? Lindsay is my daughter too. She's as much mine as she is yours, only I have time for her, you don't."

He flipped her onto her back so that she was facing him. He stroke her cheek, enjoying her trembling whimpers. "Catherine don't tell anyone about this little spat or else you might find yourself and Lindsay in more trouble than you ever imagined." He warned, before slamming her head against the floor and getting up. Catherine lay still, unable to move.

Finally almost an hour later, Catherine regained consciousness. She winced as she got to her feet. She was probably covered in bruises and her arm was bleeding again. She walked into the kitchen and put her arm under the skin, before wrapping a bandage around it. She passed the mirror in the hallway and saw her bruises. She hoped her makeup tricks would be up to par. She headed upstairs to check on her daughter.

Lindsay sat up the moment her mother opened the door. "Mommy?' she whimpered.

"Hey honey, weren't you sleeping?" Catherine asked her daughter quietly.

"It got loud." She said.

Catherine felt tears flood her eyes. "It was nothing baby, just a little talk between Daddy and me." She said trying to keep her daughter away from the horrific truth. Her father was a drug addict and a violent one.

Lindsay wrapped her arms around Catherine's waist, which made Catherine draw a sharp breath of pain. Lindsay let go, but Catherine pulled the small girl onto her lap.

"We're gonna be okay." She said softly.

Lindsay leaned her head against her mother's chest. "Okay." She said softly, rubbing her eyes.

Catherine ruffed her hair. "I love you honey."

"I love you too Mommy. Can you stay with me tonight?" Lindsay asked with a pleading look in her eyes and her lips in a trembling pout.

Catherine had no problem with that. She was in fact glad. "Of course honey. I'm not going anywhere." She said softly, laying down onto her side, the only part of her not aching at the moment.

Lindsay smiled for the first time that night and snuggled close to her mother. Catehrine played with her daughter's hair and started to sing something to Lindsay that she hadn't sung since her daughter was a baby. In fact, Catherine hadn't sang since then, but she sang now, for both her daughter's comfort and her own.

_Six pounds nine ounces, looking up at me_

_Like I have all the answers_

_I hope I have the ones you need_

_I've never really done this, now I know what scared is_

_Sometimes I'll protect you from everything that's wrong_

_Other times I'll let you just find out on your own_

_But that's when you'll be groing_

_And the whole time I'll be knowing_

Lindsay let out a contented sigh, bringing a smile to Catherine's face.

_I'm afraid you'll have to suffer through some of my mistakes_

_Lord knows I'll be trying to give you what it takes_

_What it takes to know the difference between getting by and living_

_Cause anything worth doing is worth doing all the way_

_Just know you'll have to live with all the choices that you make_

_So make sure you're always giving_

_Way more than you're taking_

She knew she was singing to herself as much as her daughter. The lyrics held a message for her as well.

_You're gonna fly with every dream you chase_

_You're gonna cry but know that that's okay_

_Sometimes life's not fair_

_But if you just hang there_

_You're gonna see that sometimes bad is good_

_You just have to believe things turn out like they should_

_Life has no guarantees, but always loved by me _

_You're gonna be. _

Catherine kissed her sleeping daughter and softly murmured.

"Someday you're gonna see, just what you are to me"

With that, she closed her eyes and was soon asleep.

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Did you guys liked that? R&R if you did. If not, stop reading! Thanks so much for the support guys. Song is You're Gonna Be by Reba McEntire.


	9. What Make Up Won't Cover Up

Chapter Nine- Makeup Won't Cover Up

Thanks to sparkling-strawberries, CissaMalfoy, soliz, Nisha14, myfairlady, and DrusillBraun for their sweet reviews. Thanks a lot guys!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Catherine tried every makeup trick in that she knew before finally she was able to mask most of the bruises on her face. They were still there, but between the makeup and the darkness of the lab, they would go unnoticed. The ones on her wrists and arms were another matter. No amount of concealer would cover them. She went into her closet and pulled out a long sleeved shirt that went past her wrists to cover part of her hands. She winced when she pulled on her belt and tucked her gun at her hip. The bruises there were massive. She ached every where thought.

Lindsay wandered into her mother's room, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Catherine had slipped quietly out of her daughter's room very early that morning.

"Mommy?" Lindsay called her mother sleepily.

Catherine was immediately at the little girl's side. "What's wrong sweetie?" she asked gently in the soft tone that she reserved only for her daughter.

"Nothing Mommy, I was just wondering where I was going to stay while you're working." Lindsay said, looking at he rmother.

Catherine thought it over. Having Lindsay stay with her father was out of the question. She really had no other choice.

"You can come to work with me." She decided.

Lindsay clapped her hands and cheered. "YAY!" She quickly ran out of Catherine's room and into her own to change into what Lindsay called her little CSI uniform.

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Fifteen minutes later, Catherine and Lindsay were in the car on the way to the Las Vegas crime lab, Catherine in clothes unusually warm for the hot weather and Lindsay in one of Catherine's tighter shirts and a bulletproof vest. Catherine had nearly died of laughing at the sight of her little girl trying to be just like mommy. They pulled into the parking lot and Lindsay was out of the car before Catherine completely stopped the car.

"Lindsay don't you dare do that again." Catherine said firmly.

Lindsay lowered her head for a second before happily replying. "Yes Mommy, but I'm so excited."

Catherine had to smile at that. "I know honey. I know. Come on, let's not keep everyone waiting." She led her daughter into the lab.

Immediately they were bombarded by the entire CSI team. Gil was in the lead.

"Hey Butterfly." He called as the little girl wrapped her arms around his legs.

Nick wasn't far behind and he picked Lindsay up and spun her around with her giggling hysterically the whole time. Catherine watched with a smile on her face.

"Hey Greg, can Lindsay help you out today?" she asked.

Greg was more than happy to oblige. It was rare that Catherine would allow her daughter to even graze the world the CSI worked in, but it was always a pleasure to teach Lindsay since she had the same curious and quick witted nature as her mother.

"Sure." He said, beckoning to Lindsay. "Let's go drive Sara nuts."

"Please no cashews." Sara retorted as she followed them out.

Nick laughed as they left. "Well me and Warrick here got a scene out in the desert." He said heading out.

"Hey Cath…" Warrick said on his way out. "Promise I won't do anyting stupid."

Catherine laughed. "Right Warrick, right."

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Ten minutes later, Grissom and Catherine were sitting in the lab, waiting on DNA results from a previously processed crime scene. Catherine wasn't happy about Sara covering her case, but she couldn't do anything about it. She hand combed her hair and then plopped her forehead into her hand with a groan. The machine beeped.

Grissom and Catherine were both at the machine before it stopped beeping. Catherine glanced at the lab report.

"Silicon." She said, exchanging glances with Grissom.

"That's everywhere in the desert." He pointed out, surveying Catherine. "Are you wearing more makeup than usual?"

Catherine made a face. "I don't think that matters to you." She said.

He gazed at her, admiring her features. She was always so strong, so independent. When she went back to Eddie, Grissom had thought things were over for him, but after the night before, he knew that were definitely over. Catherine would never trust another man again. Not after Eddie had put her only daughter in danger. Grissom could only wish that he would be able to live up to what she needed and get her to trust again. Somehow he wondered if it was even remotely possible.

Sara called them into the garage. Catherine was nearly sprinting while Grissom hurried to catch up.

"What did you find?" Catherine asked.

Sara held up about twenty vials of the same blue liquid that Catherine had found on the dash.

"Found these under the seat." Sara said, handing one of them to Catherine.

Catherine examined it as Grissom picked up another vial. "Did we ever figure out what it was?" he asked.

"Yeah. It's a drug known as PCP." Sara said handing him the test results. "Gives you hallucinations."

Catherine was staring at it in disbelief. "Eddie was taking this in front of my daughter." She said softly.

Grissom reached to rub her shoulders, but she violently pulled away. He stared at her in confusion. She had never done that to him before.

"Just figure out who else was in the car with them." Catherine said harshly.

"Yeah shut the door I wanna check the tires." Sara said.

Catherine slammed the door shut but part of her sleeve caught onto the door and when she pulled away her sleeve lifted high enough for Grissom to catch a glimpse of angry looking bruises on Catherine's wrists. She caught his stare and fixed an icy cold stare of her own at him before turning around and walking away.

Grissom was left with a massive ache in his heart. He knew Eddie was crazy and high, but he never thought he would go as far as to physically hurting Catheirne, but then again, Grissom didn't know much about their marriage or their divorce. Catherine kept that to herself, despite Grissom's efforts to make her open up. He watched her retreating back. His heart ached and he felt a forlorn feeling. Something about her always got to him.

"What the hell did he do to you, Catherine?" Grissom wondered under his breath.

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Sorry that was short and so late, but I hope you guys liked it. I'll update it again as soon as I can.


	10. A Time Like This

Chapter Ten- A Time Like This

Thanks to disneygal16, Lady Heather, DrusillaBraun, CissaMalfoy, Nisha14, Pandy Roxy Chick, Teliko. x3, myfairlady, and soliz for their reviews!

Special thanks to Sergeant Happy Bunny…what would I do without you? Oh yeah I know…get lost every single day and go insane and have to be admitted to an asylum with foam walls and straight jackets. Thanks for keeping me together and for dealing with me and all my grouchy and mood swingy moments.

Also this update is mainly for myfairlady…for PMing me and making me write this. Lol. You're the reason why it's gotten out so fast.

Idea: I am thinking about writing another story with either all of the CSIs in high school or one of them all in medival times. Or perhaps both. How does Princess Catherine sound? Lol. Pop me a review with YAY or NAY.

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"Catherine!" Grissom called, running after Catherine down the hallway.

She didn't stop, but walked faster. Finally Grissom caught up to her and reached for her arm. She pulled away, wincing in pain.

"Oh I'm so sorry." Grissom apologized.

"It's fine." Catherine said shortly.

"No it's not." He blurted out.

She stared at him. He took a deep breath.

"Catherine, what has Eddie been doing to you?" he asked, his words quiet and caring.

His tone almost made Catherine cry. _Why does he always have to make me feel loved, but never show that he cares any other time? _She asked herself.

"Nothing that I can't handle." She responded, masking her thought with a bleak tone.

"Catherine..." Grissom began, but Catherine didn't let him finish.

"I'm a big girl, Gil. I can handle myself." She told him, before turning away and walking back into the lab, to check on how things were going between Lindsay and Greg.

Grissom watched her through the glass. She was feigning a smile in front of her daughter and in front of Greg. Greg looked up and caught sight of Grissom standing outside. He slipped out of the room.

"How long do frogs live?" he asked, randomly. He had been testing the water where Eddie's car had been found and the question just popped into his head.

Grissom didn't answer, just stared at the two girls in the room…Catherine teaching Lindsay about the pieces of evidence that she was looking at through the microscope and Lindsay staring in fascination.

Greg elbowed his boss. "Hey Griss?" he asked, waving his hand rapidly in front of Grissom's face.

"Uhh…no." he said, not really paying attention.

Greg scrunched up his face. "Uhhh Griss?" he asked.

Grissom ignored him and walked into the lab. Lindsay started babbling about how she wanted to be a CSI. Catherine was giving him a look that said don't-you-dare-mention-anything. He complied, knowing Catherine would never forgive him if he scared Lindsay.

"Can we talk?" he asked softly, a look of longing in his eyes.

Catherine didn't want to be questioned. Didn't want her life stripped down to the parts that hurt the most in front of Grissom. He may be her best friend, but she had an image. She had pride. She had never been weak and she wouldn't allow it to show now.

"Gil, I got a case." She said hurriedly, heading out of the room. "Maybe later."

Grissom didn't follow her. He knew her by heart by now. He would have to leave her alone for a while and not pry despite the worry he felt. If he tried, she would bit down her tongue and refused to tell him, just because. Not to mention, her temper scared even him. Lindsay was staring at him curiously. He flashed her a small smile.

"Have fun and don't mess anything up." He said, ruffling her hair.

"I won't let her." Greg said, saluting as he walked in.

"Actually I was talking about you." Grissom said matter-of-factly. "So let me rephrase. Lindsay don't let Greg mess anything up."

Lindsay giggled which brought another smile to Grissom's face. He walked out on a pouting Greg and a happy Lindsay and headed for his office, wanting a distraction from Catherine.

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An Hour Later

Catherine was practically running down the hall with an evidence file. She had to show it to Grissom. She had samples for Greg to test and she was tired of interns badgering her for a piece of advice on how to get in Grissom's good books and be accepted for a job in the graveyard shift.

She turned to the corner and saw the one person she never wanted to see again. Eddie…drunk. He spotted her before she had a chance to run in the other direction. He stormed up to her and she lowered her face, letting her hair cover the areas that were bruised from his tantrum the night before.

"Catherine!" he yelled at her, his words slurred. "Lindsay's supposed to be with me."

"No way in hell." She yelled right back at him, losing her temper immediately. People were turning to stare but she didn't care. "You nearly got her killed."

"I get partial custody." He slurred.

Catherine met his eyes with defiant blue eyes. "You get visitation rights and after this incident, it'll be over my dead body before you see her ever again." She growled at him.

"That can be arranged." He said angrily, grabbing her by the shoulders and throwing her against the glass wall.

Catherine felt the breath being knocked out of her as she caught a whiff of Eddie's breath. He let go of her and she slid to the ground, where he kicked in the stomach. She cried out in pain and then quieted with only soft whimpers. Nick saw what was happening and knocked over his chair in his hurry to get to her. Before he reached her, however, Eddie felt a tap on his shoulder.

He spun to come face to face with Grissom. Grissom felt his anger consume him. Eddie spat at Catherine.

"Don't tell me you guys are gonna stand up for this whore." He said, spitting at Catherine.

Grissom lost it. He socked Eddie in the face, breaking his nose. Eddie howled in pain as he tried to hit Grissom back. The other CSIs started to race toward Grissom and Eddie. Nick reached for his gun and drew it.

"Back away from Catherine and Grissom." He said coldly, his gun leveled at Eddie.

The other CSIs followed suit. Eddie stared at the group standing before him. They had all drawn their weapons except for Greg and Sara, who were doing their best trying to keep Grissom from tackling Eddie. He turned toward Catherine who was huddled in a tight ball on the ground with a look of pain in her eyes.

"Watch you back bitch, I'll come for you when you're friends aren't around." He threatened before spinning on his heels and walking away.

Nick tried to help her up, but she dragged herself to her feet, wincing from her many bruises.

"I'm okay Nicky." She insisted.

"Behave." Sara said firmly, before she and Greg let Grissom out of their grasp.

He had Catherine in his arms, before she even realized what was going on. He was gentle and Catherine felt safe. She buried her face in neck and started to cry. The others slipped away quietly, giving them some privacy.

Grissom felt himself hurt listening to Catherine's broken sobs. He rubbed her back gently and murmured soothing words in her ear. Catherine's sobs quieted, but she didn't move away. She just stayed there, feeling something stir in her heart that she hadn't expected to feel at a time like this.

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TADA! This is an hours worth of work or play. Lol I'm not sure which one yet. Hope you liked it!


	11. Three Parts Dead

Chapter 11- Three Parts Dead

Thanks to Daydream1127, Nessa.Willows, CissaMalfoy, Pandy Roxy Chick, soliz, Nisha14, Teliko. x3, disneygal16, DrusillaBraun, and myfairlady for their reviews.

Once again, thanks Sergeant. You know what I want to say.

Disclaimer: Own nothing for any of my stories.

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Catherine felt stupid, betrayed, and angry. She had fallen for Eddie once again. It was stupid. It was dumb. It was the biggest mistake she had ever made. He had tricked her with his charm again and she had followed him like a blind dog. She buried her face deeper into Grissom's chest as hot tears flooded her eyes and seeped through his shirt.

He rubbed her back gently. "There let it out." He said softly.

She sniffled and then pulled away. "Sorry about that." She ssaid softly. "I just lost it."

He reached for her hand. "Nothing to be sorry about. I'm here. Always and forever."

"I know Gil." She said softly.

Grissom knew it was wrong, but he couldn't resist the temptation. He was so close to her and he could almost brush her lips with his own. He couldn't fit it. He knew it was the wrong time, but he couldn't control himself anymore. He wanted her so much. He leaned down and kissed her. When he pulled away, the expression on her face, told him that he had just made the biggest mistake of his life.

"Cath…" he began.

She turned away. "Gil. Just let it go. I can't do this." She said softly. "I just can't."

Tears were filling her eyes again. It broke Grissom's heart to know that he put them in there. He tried to apologize, but she was already walking away. Her steps were rushed, not the usual confident steps of Catherine Willows. Grissom watched her walk away, feeling forlorn.

Catherine couldn't believe what was happening. Seconds ago, she felt like she had Grissom standing by her side, but now she wasn't sure. Her thoughts couldn't help but travel to the worse case scenario. She knew Grissom would never be like Eddie, but was he taking advantage of her as well? She couldn't tell anymore. She was scared. Scared of having another man in her life like Eddie. She wasn't brave anymore. She could handle any crime scene she ever had to face, but her own love life was something she could not handle.

Luckily, she ran into Warrick, who was just heading out to a crime scene, that had nothing to do with her. She hadn't been pulled off the case, so she gladly tagged along. He didn't mention what had happened between her and Eddie and she didn't bring it up. He just reached over and gave her hand a squeeze, telling her everything she needed to hear. She managed a faint smile before sliding into the passenger seat of the car. He gunned the engine and they were off to another crime scene, doing what they did best. Find evidence.

Catherine was glad for the distraction. Anything to take her mind off of Gil Grissom.

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Grissom stared at the butterfly in his office. It's wings were closed, the exposed side of pretty, but the pattern on the other side was beautiful. The insect remind him of Catherine. She was beautiful, but she always closed her wings to keep anyone from seeing the real her. She hid behind brains and a sarcastic attitude. She never let herself into the vulnerable position where her feelings were exposed to the world. She was like him in this sense, but she did it in a way that was so much more discreet. Butterflies were beautiful and no one could look away. Same thing with Catherine. She had something about her that drew people to her. He closed his eyes. He had to fix things between them, before it was too late.

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Warrick and Catherine worked in silence. It was a comfortable one, for they had been working together for a long time and knew each other too well for there to be any awkwardness between them.

Warrick could easily tell Catherine was too intently focused on the blood splatter before her. He moved beside her. She was squatting in front of the splatters, staring at them. He looked down at the top of her head.

"Catherine? If you put your face any closer to those stains, you're gonna kiss them." He said wryly.

Catherine glanced up at him and stuck her tongue out at him. "I'm just focused."

Warrick knelt down by her side. "You always focus, Cath, but right now, you're practically touching the drops with your nose. Something is wrong and I know it isn't Eddie."

Catheirne didn't answer. Warrick sighed.

"Catherine. I've known you for a very long time now. I think over five years. You've helped me out when I was addicted to gambling and nearly lost my job. I testified for you when Eddie brought on that child neglect charge. You helped me through some tough times with my marriage. I think I owe you a favor."

"Warrick, I don't think there's anything you can do." She replied softly.

"Perhaps not, but I could listen." He said gently, putting a hand on her arm and looking at her with concern in his eyes.

She broke down. Warrick knew her better than almost anyone, except Grissom, and she couldn't hold her feelings in anymore.

"Eddie and I started out good. In fact, we started out great. It was wonderful, going home to him. I studied during the day and then danced at night to pay the bills. He was an up and coming music producer and I was in love. I quit medical school for his career and after a while, we brought Lindsay into the world. I thought I was in heaven." She said softly, relating the story that she had shared with no one except Grissom until that day.

Warrick knew what was going to happen. "You saw the drugs didn't you?" he asked.

She glanced up. "You knew?" she asked a little surprised.

"I had an idea. I grew up around that stuff. It's hard not to notice, but I figured you would know about it if that did happen." He said a little sheepishly.

"I didn't, until one night I came home to see my one year old daughter playing with the stuff. I remember him going crazy when I said I was leaving. He crammed this pill down my throat and before I knew it. I was addicted to coke. I couldn't leave him after that. He was my only supply." She said, tears filling up her eyes.

Warrick rubbed her back. "But you did though. You got your life together Cath."

"For Lindsay." She paused. "If it wasn't for her, I would still be in that hell hole."

Warrick tiled her chin until he could look into her eyes. "Catherine you're like a sister to me and I know you don't like it when people pry, but I know Eddie's not the one that's nagging at you this time. You're not afraid of him, but there's someone else that you are. Isn't there?"

She knew he was right. "Yeah. There is someone that I have feelings for but I'm so afraid, Warrick. What if he turns out to be just like Eddie? I know he never would be, but what if things end badly?" she asked, half talking to herself, half talking to Warrick.

Warrick now knew what was on her mind. She was scared. She could handle murderers, rapists, and kidnappers, but she couldn't handle things when it came to herself. She had put herself out there only to be hurt badly. She wanted desperately to try again, but she was scared of the risk.

"Life must be understood backward, but if you want to live it. You have to more forward. To fear love is to fear life…those who do are already three parts dead." He said quietly before standing up and heading out the door to speak to Brass.

Catherine stared at him. She was pondering his words, but she was also wondering if Warrick Brown had taken a philosophy class.

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How did you guys like that? More on the way. Slow to update, but I will try and keep my updates as good as I can.


	12. Capable of Murder

Chapter Twelve- Capable of Murder

Thanks to myfairlady (for reviewing twice...THANX), CissaMalfoy, soliz, Pandy. Roxy. Chick, Daydreamer1127, disneygal16, JacobedRose, Teliko. x3, and DrusillaBraun.

I LOVE YOU SERGEANT! TWO WORDS- LOVE YOU! Hehe I know you're gonna read this. You always do.

Love Always

Cadet

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Sadly.

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"You found her?" Warrick asked Brass in a low voice.

Brass glanced toward the entrance of the house that was currently a crime scene, making sure Catherine was well within and unable to hear them.

"Yeah. We got her. Vanessa Jills." Brass said. "She's down at the station and we're about to go into questioning."

"I'll get Catherine." Warrick said, turning to head back into the house.

Brass stopped him. "Are you sure about this? I mean, I'm not worried about Catherine, but I'm worried about what would happen if the two met face to face. Can you say police brutality?"

Warrick quirked an eyebrow. "You think it would be much better if we cut her out of the loop? I mean you know Catherine, she will find out and when she does, I would not want to be the cause of her anger."

Brass sighed. "You're right. Better for her to know now, than later. Let's go."

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"You okay?" Sara asked before entering the interrogation room herself.

Catherine was staring through the glass at the pink haired woman sitting in the chair.

"She left my child to die." Catherine whispered bitterly. "She fucking locked my child in the damn car."

Sara reached over to wrap an arm around Catherine. "Don't worry. I'll do everything the best I can." She said, entering the room.

"Miss Jills, I'm Sara Sidle with the Las Vegas Crime Lab. I would like to ask you some questions." Sara said all business upon entering the room.

"Like I have a choice." Vanessa replied coldly. "Let's just get this over with."

"We found your car."

"Great. Gimme the key."

Sara held up a hand. "Not so fast. It's currently in our lab. It's a crime scene."

Vanessa glared. "It's my car. What kind of crime could happen there?" she asked standoffishly.

Sara bit back a few profanities. "An eight year old was left alone in a car registered to you and nearly drowned. That's a crime scene. Want to tell me what happened?"

"Okay fine. My boyfriend, who's also my producer and I were driving around so we can go meet up with our dealer, but he had to bring his little whiny midget with him. Something at his crazy ex-wife and him getting in a fight. But anyway, we were driving and it started to rain. Not my fault. Hit an icy spot, not my fault and well the car went through the fence and into that ditch thing, not my fault."

Sara jotted down some notes, fighting back surges of anger.

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Catherine was trembling. She hated Vanessa with a deep hate. All at once Catherine knew she was capable of killing. Not that she hadn't known that. She had been trained to fire and kill, but had never actually felt the unrelenting urge to actually murder someone. She investigated murders, she didn't commit them, but watching Sara question Vanessa brought out a different side of Catherine Willows.

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"So none of this was your fault?" Sara asked, her voice laced with sarcasm.

"Blame physics, honey." Vanessa growled at her.

"Well tell me why you left a kid alone in the car?"

"Okay you know. My main concern was my boyfriend and myself. I have no use for a whining twerp that wouldn't shut her little trap." Vanessa replied almost matter-of-factly. "I mean come on…some yappy little brat is bound to get on everyone's nerves."

Before Sara could say a word, Catherine burst into the room. Her blue eyes were flashing with anger.

"Don't you dare talk about my daughter that way!" Catherine yelled at Vanessa, who was trying to shrink away.

Sara and Brass scrambled to get control over Catherine before she hit Vanessa.

"Don't you dare call her a little brat, because I don't care if they find you guilty or not, but no matter where they lock you up or where they hide you, I'm gonna hunt you down and I'm gonna kill you. I don't care if I get arrested, but I will. You can't walk away from my little girl and expect me not to do anything about it!" Catherine hissed, struggling against Brass's and Sara's grasp.

Nick had heard the commotion and saw what was going on through the glass. Sara wasn't strong enough to handle Catherine, and Brass had to watch Vanessa's movements as well as Catherine's. From appearances, Catherine was about to get loose any moment and strangle a pink hair woman. Nick stepped in.

With ease, he wrapped one arm around Catherine and pulled her out of the room and laid his hands on her shoulders. Sara followed them out.

"What was that?" Sara asked, as Catherine struggled with breaths to calm herself down.

"Sorry." Catherine muttered. "Lost my temper."

"No kidding." Nick said, still keeping a hand on Catherine, just in case she decided to go back in and sock Vanessa in the face.

"I'm okay." She said breathing deeply.

"Okay…" Nick said, slowly letting her go.

Catherine turned to Sara. "Get her on something Sara, or else you'll be chasing me for murder."

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"Is she allowed to do that?" Vanessa asked.

Brass shrugged. "Catherine does what she wants around here."

"I take it she's the crazy ex-wife." Vanessa smirked.

Brass forced a tight smile. "Got it in one."

"Don't think she's allowed to threaten me though and if you're not charging me with anything, I think I'm gonna leave now." Vanessa said with a cocky smile.

"Not so fast Pinky." Nick said walking in with Sara.

"Child abandonment on the first degree," Sara said. "We're holding you over night."

"My lawyer is gonna get a kick outta this. A CSI threatening me." Vanessa said as Brass placed handcuffs on her and read her- her rights.

As she was led out, Nick had to get something off his chest. "A mother is allowed to threaten whoever she wants to when it comes to her child."

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Catherine was exhausted. She went to her locker and opened it slowly, leaning her head against the cool metal. It felt good.

"Kitty, Cat- Cat!" Greg sang as he entered the locker room.

"I'm gonna pretend that I didn't hear that." Catherine groaned softly.

"Well, I was just gonna try and get a smile out of you, and let you know that I'm here for you." Greg said, turning seriously. He paused. "We all are."

Catherine gave him a small smile. "I know." She said. "I know.

"Oh and Lindsay's waiting in your office."

"Thanks Greg."

"No problem."

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"Ready to go?" Catherine asked as she walked into her office.

"Yep," Lindsay chirped taking her mother's hand and following her out of the lab.

Ten minutes later, they were home. It was pretty late and Catherine wasn't used to working during the day. Her entire team was pulling overtime this week and she had followed suit. She had to return to work later that night, but just because Catherine could pull twenty four hours of work, doesn't mean Lindsay could.

"Bed squirt." Catherine said, pointing toward the stairs.

Lindsay pouted but obeyed. "Fine Mommy." She obeyed, scampering up the stairs.

Catherine smiled as she sank down into the couch. Her earlier anger had subsided and she was back to being cool, sarcastic Catherine. She went into the kitchen and pulled out a carton of orange juice. She poured a glass and then laced it with vodka. A screwdriver. She and Grissom had created it once after a very mind boggling case a year earlier. She sighed. Grissom. The newest addition to her messed up life. She was still trying to figure out how he fit into the equation.

A car pulled up into her driveway. Catherine moved to the window. _Who on earth would come here now? _She wondered.

A too familiar figure stepped out of the car. "Shit." Catherine muttered, moving quickly to put the latch on the door, just seconds before Eddie began to bang on it.

"Let me in you whore!" he ranted at her. "Why the hell did you put Vanessa in jail?"

Catherine moved around the house, quickly making sure all the doors and windows were locked. She was in such a frenzy, she forgot where she left her gun. The shower upstairs was still going, so she didn't need to worry about Lindsay coming downstairs at the last moment. She rushed back to the living room, grabbing her cell phone, begging it to turn on.

Suddenly a shot rang out through the night and a high and drunk, and very angry Eddie burst into the house waving a gun.

Catherine's blue eyes widened. Instinct told her this was not going to end well.

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Hint: someone's gonna die. Can you guess who? I allow you guys three guesses. Hehe. Or I could take a vote. Both is perfectly okay.


	13. Standing her Ground

Chapter Thirteen- Standing Her Ground

Thanks to myfairlady, Daydreamer1127, Nisha14, soliz, DrusillaBraun, starkidtw, CissaMalfoy, ath3ns, Nessa. Willows, disneygal16, and JacobedRose for their reviews!

Sergeant Crazy Ass…okay I'm just kidding. Thanks for the ideas.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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Eddie was upon her before she had a chance to react. He grabbed her roughly by the wrists and shoved her up against the wall.

"Why the hell did you put Vanessa in prison?" he slurred at her.

Catherine glared defiantly back…completely unafraid. "She left my daughter in the car alone to die." She said through gritted teeth. "Be happy I didn't put her away for attempted murder."

Eddie drew his cell phone out of his pocket, still holding her with the other hand against the wall. His gun was tucked in his jacket pocket, and Catherine wished she could reach it.

"Call them and tell them to let her go." He demanded, shoving the phone at her.

She turned away but stood her ground stubbornly. "No. She's getting what she deserves."

Eddie slapped her across the face, leaving a red mark on her cheek. Catherine winced but didn't cave. Eddie lost it.

He picked her up and threw her down on the floor and straddled her, hitting her over and over again. She let out a whimper of pain, and tried desperately to block his blows. He grabbed a fistful of her hair and pulled her face close to his.

"Call." He said.

She shook her head. Eddie slammed her head against the ground and when he lifted her back up. Her eyes were closed and her head was lolling to one side. He muttered a curse word under his breath and checked her pulse. There was none.

"Shit." He muttered again grabbing her by the arms. He had to get rid of the body and he had to get rid of it fast, before Lindsay came downstairs. He dragged Catherine across the room and wrapped her unmoving form in his jacket. He carried her outside and heaved her into the backseat and put the car in reverse.

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Lindsay had been watching from the staircase railing. Eddie hadn't noticed her at all and for that Lindsay was glad. She was scared though and her body refused to move. Her mother hadn't been moving when her father had dragged her out. Lindsay felt a shiver course through her body. Her mother might be dead.

_No. _Lindsay thought defiantly. Her mother wouldn't leave her behind like that.

She quickly ran down the stairs, her hair still sopping wet. She found her mother's cell phone. She made sure to go the long way into the living room, through the kitchen so she wouldn't mess up any of the evidence that had just been created. She was the daughter of a CSI after all. She pushed the number 1. The speed dial for Gil Grissom. The phone started to ring. Lindsay curled up on the couch right where her mother was sitting only moments before and tucked her legs under her, waiting for the one man her mother had always trusted in her life to answer the phone.

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Grissom hadn't been home yet. He wasn't planning to. He had been thinking long and hard about him and Catherine and he couldn't stop. He sighed and rubbed his tired eyes. There was a knock on his door and Sara came in.

"You left this in the lab." Sara said, handing him a small phone.

He took it, without looking up. "Thanks." He replied.

"Hey you need to talk?" Sara asked a little concerned.

"No," Grissom responded bluntly.

Just then the phone went off. Grissom glanced at the caller I.D. It was Catherine's house. His heart skipped a beat. Maybe it was Catherine calling him to talk. But there was something nagging at him. Usually Catherine called him with her cell, not her home number. But then again, when she usually called him, they were usually on a case. He pushed his thoughts aside and flipped the cell phone open.

Lindsay's voice came over the phone.

"Uncle Grissom!" Lindsay cried, through tears. "Daddy took Mommy!"

"WHAT?" Grissom demanded, standing up and knocking over his chair in the process.

Sara jumped back and Nick and Warrick hurried in to see what the commotion was all about.

"Uncle Grissom. Daddy took Mommy!" Lindsay cried again sobbing hysterically.

"I'll be right there." Grissom said through gritted teeth. "Hang in there Butterfly."

Lindsay murmured something and then the phone went dead.

Grissom looked tired and worn. Nick didn't like that combination. Warrick was thinking the same thing. Grissom was their supervisor for a reason. It was more than the fact that he was the best of the best when it came to forensics; it was because he was strong through every case. The cases that got to him, Sara, Greg, Nick, and everyone else, Grissom could see from the practical point of view. Warrick knew Grissom couldn't' look at this case that way. None of them could.

They waited in silence. Long enough for Greg to poke his head in the door, wondering why everyone was gathered in Grissom's office.

Grissom took a breath. "Eddie's kidnapped Catherine." He said slowly

The team stared. That was a crushing blow for them. But after the initial thought wore off the team immediately started for the garage to get the CSI truck. They were going to do what they do best. Find evidence. Find Catherine. Solve the case.

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Well well well….don't kill me please. I promise I will update soon. I promise. Hehe….please don't kill me for what I wrote.


	14. One Last Stand

Chapter Fourteen- Last Stand

Thanks to myfairlady (for all of ur awesome reviews!), disneygal16, kathfire, DrusillaBraun (especially for giving me good advice throughout my stories), Daydreamer1127, CissaMalfoy (please don't' kill me), JacobedRose, Teliko. x3, gc fan, xo lynette xo, and soliz.

Thanks Bunny head, for dealing with all my temper tantrums and for not getting mad when I snap at you after a bad day. You'll get the answer to your question in this chapter.

Disclaimer: Nothing owned.

Author's Note: Just a few more and this story's done. But I'm thinking about ending it in a way that calls for a sequel. We'll see. I would love to have your opinion about it.

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Eddie drove to the outskirts of Las Vegas, away from the bright lights and busy buildings. There was a wooded area that he and Catherine used to go to when they were married. It was a place where she felt intoned with her hometown. It was deserted and they had spent countless hours of time there with just each other, doing whatever suited them. After Lindsay was born, they had taken her there for picnics. _Correction._ Eddie thought. _Catherine took her. _He didn't ever go with them. The kid was a handful and he didn't want a migraine.

That all seemed far in the past now. Eddie barely remembered it, but he felt maybe it was the best place to leave her because no one knew about it but them, and perhaps Lindsay.

He needed a hit badly. He jerked the car to a stop. Glancing in the backseat at Catherine, laying across the backseat, he made a decision.

Catherine Willows was dead. She wasn't going anywhere, so he felt knew he could take a hit without her waking up. He smiled. Dead. He kinda like that word for her.

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Grissom was at Catherine's house within minutes. Lindsay rushed to open the door when it rang. Her face was tearstained and her body jolted over and over again with recovering hiccups. Grissom knelt down a little and she raced into his arms, burying her wet face into his shoulder.

He hoisted her onto his hip and turn to his team.

"Be extra focused and observant. We don't want to miss anything that can help us find her."

"Right." Sara replied.

Each one of the CSIs took a different section of the house. Grissom in the living room, Sara in Catherine's bedroom, Nick in the kitchen, Greg outside, and Warrick took the bathrooms.

Sara pulled the covers back from the bed. She felt like she was intruding in on Catherine's privacy, but this was standard procedure for a missing person, so she knew Catherine wouldn't mind. Sara just felt uncomfortable. She screened the sheets. Nada. It seemed like the last time Catherine had taken a man home, it was years ago. Sara wondered how lonely her friend really was.

Nick downstairs opened the fridge. It was nearly empty, except for some juice, milk, and stuff that could be heated and made very quickly. Mother or no, Catherine was a still an overworked CSI. He shut the door and moved around the counter. Not much to see. No footprints, blood or anything.

Greg hated working outside. But since he was the rookie, he had last pick. Catherine's yard was mowed, but it wasn't much else. Obviously she never got around to gardening, although the few wildflowers blooming in her front lawn wasn't really bad looking. He took pictures of footprints in the dirt, marking, casting, and measuring them, before moving on.

Warrick had the least amount of luck. The bathroom downstairs was clean, which surprised him. Catherine worked a lot of overtime. She didn't seem to have the time to clean. Maybe it was her mother who cleaned her house. He sighed. He almost wished to be outside in the pouring rain with Greg, but he wanted Catherine back. He had to cover every inch no matter how irrelevant.

Grissom spotted a stain of blood on the white carpet. His blood ran cold. He bent down to take a sample, but a single strand of strawberry blonde hair told him it belonged to Catherine without a single test. He was scared. If she was bleeding, she could suffer internal damage or worse, already be dead. He refused to believe that.

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Half an hour later, the CSI team was back in the living room. The surrounded the single pool of blood in the living room. They all looked defeated. They had found tire tracks, foot prints, and blood, but nothing pointed to her location. They already knew it was Eddie who took her. Lindsay was witness to it.

Grissom knelt down until his eyes were level with the child's.

"Lindsay, can you think of any place that your dad would take your mom?" He asked gently.

Lindsay pondered it for a moment. Then a smile spread across her face.

"Daddy and Mommy used to go to this place way back in the woods. Mommy told me about it and when I turned three she started taking me too, but Daddy never came with us." She said thoughtfully.

Grissom gave a satisfied nod.

"Mommy's there right?" Lindsay asked, her big blue eyes hopeful.

"We hope." Nick said, moving in. "Can you tell us where it is?"

"I think so."

Catherine's life or corpse now lay in the hands of her daughter.

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Grissom drove faster than he should with the sirens blaring. Lindsay sat in the passenger seat, clinging onto the door with wide eyes. She had never seen Uncle Gil drive this fast. He made a sharp turn and Nick hit his head against the window.

"Grissom, please if we go off this cliff, we'll never get to Catherine." Sara pointed out as she held on for dear life.

His foot released the pedal slightly.

Further ahead, he saw a car and a man standing outside smoking. Instinct told him it was Eddie.

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Eddie saw sirens pull up. _Damn. _He thought.

He glanced through the window. Catherine was under the seat, not moving. Duh dead bodies don't move. He just had to make sure they didn't get close enough to see her there.

Grissom stepped out of the car and Eddie felt anger surge. He was not about to be arrested by this man.

"Eddie, where's Catherine?" Grissom asked, walking up to him, as the rest of the CSIs scrambled out of the car.

He signaled them to stay back. This was his war.

Eddie laughed. "She's dead." He said matter-of-factly. He then drew a gun from his pocket. Catherine's 45 caliber automatic.

"I wonder if her weapon works on you." He said, aiming the gun between Grissom's eyes.

The CSIs grabbed their guns, but Eddie was faster than their reactions after they had been stuck in a speeding car. Brass was caught in traffic.

Eddie had his gun pointed at Grissom's temple within seconds. He faced them. "Drop your weapons, or his brains gets blown out." He growled.

Slowly, starting with Sara, guns were lowered and dropped. The CSIs were ready for a disaster.

"How do you know she's dead?" Sara asked, trying to buy time.

Eddie snarled at her. "Cause I checked her pulse you dumbass."

Sara winced at his tone.

Nick opened his mouth. "How did you kill her?" he asked softly.

"I slammed her head against the ground. Little bitch didn't even get a chance to cry out." He said, his hand with the gun still against Grissom's head.

More sirens were heard. Eddie panicked and his finger tightened on the trigger.

A 45 caliber automatic spoke.

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GASP! WHO DIED?


	15. Killing Myself

Chapter 15- Killing Myself

Thanks to Pandy Roxy Chick, Daydreamer1127, JacobedRose, Teliko. x3, Nisha14, myfairlady, fallinidentity, tough cookie, DrusillaBraun, disneygal16, Picard's Angel, CissaMalfoy, kathfire, and soliz.

Sergeant, get over it. Everyone hates the cliffhangers. Lol

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Author's Note: Apparently I can't seem to get the e-mail alerting me to my reviews. So if I miss your review and don't add you to my thank you list, please don't be mad. When you review finally does show up, I'll still read it and keep whatever you say in mind.

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For a moment Grissom wondered if his soul was leaving his body behind. But he could hear Nick shouting something and Sara rushing past him. He opened his eyes.

Eddie was lying before him on his back. Eyes open and unblinking…staring at Grissom's feet, but not seeing anything. His body was limp as if it had been a balloon deflated by the force of a small piece of metal. Blood trickled out of the corner of his mouth. Grissom saw a dark blossom of red in the center of his chest. The red liquid seeped onto the ground, staining the Nevada desert. Grissom's trail of vision slowly moved up.

Catherine stood before him, leaning heavily on the side of Eddie's car. Both of her hands were clasped around a 45 caliber. She seemed to be in shock. Her face was ash- white. Her blue eyes were wide and surprised, as if she couldn't believe she had pulled the trigger. Her hands were shaking. Then she dropped the weapon as if it has burned her. She hit her knees and began to cry; her shoulders jerking violently with every heart wrenching sob.

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The paramedics were at the scene within seconds. Catherine shrugged them off, her expression has hard as stone. Grissom had tried to comfort her, but she had pushed him away, along with everyone else. Lindsay was her only solace. The child was in Catherine's arms, while Catherine was running her fingers through Lindsay's blonde hair. The paramedics had tried to check Catherine over, but she had refused. Not just because she was okay, but because she didn't want anyone to see the bruises and the scars she had from her last fight with Eddie.

Catherine Willows wondered why it pained her to know that it had been their last fight.

"You okay Gris?" Warrick asked, leaning on the side of the ambulance beside Grissom.

"She pushed me away." He said almost to himself

"Hey man, she's hurting. She did it to all of us." Warrick tried to comfort.

"How can she hurt? He beat her, he abused her, he damn near killed her." He asked, unable to understand.

"I don't know." Warrick said. "But this is Catherine we're talking about, since when has she done anything without a reason."

Grissom didn't answer, just gazed at Catherine with a blanket wrapped around her and her daughter, wondering how much more pain she can cause him before he finally broke.

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Catherine carried her daughter into the house. It hurt even to lift her daughter, but Catherine had to. Lindsay was the only thing keeping her together. Grissom followed her into the door, having to give her a ride home.

"Do you need me to stay the night?" he asked, following upstairs to Lindsay's room.

Catherine gently laid her daughter onto her bed and tucked her in.

"No, Gil, but thanks." She replied smoothing the covers.

"Are you sure?" he asked, following her out of the room as she shut the door behind them.

"Yes, Gil." She said.

He hesitated. And she lost it.

"Gil, do me a favor. Please get out." Catherine said, facing him. Her blue eyes flashing coldly.

He took a step back, surprised. "Are you okay?"

Catherine fought back tears. "Maybe I'm being unreasonable. Maybe I'm being stupid, but it was because of you that I had to shoot Eddie. It was because you I had to cross that line and kill him."

The tears began to flood out of her eyes…uninvited.

"Catherine…" Grissom started reaching for her hand.

She drew away. "Maybe things would've ended the same way, but part of me wants to thank you for saving my life."

Grissom lowered his eyes, becomes the introverted man he was. He had put himself out on the limb, only to fall. The pain was unbearable.

"And the other?" he asked quietly.

Catherine looked away. "The other part can't stand to be in the same room as you." She whispered, her voice strained.

He looked at her with pity and longing in his eyes, but he walked away. That's all he did and that spoke volumes. He walked away, leaving Catherine staring at his back, looking more lost than she had in years.

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Sara and Greg were in the lab, trying to make up for their lost time. Their case with Catherine was closed, and the only thing left was to fill out the closing statements and file the paperwork.

"I wonder why Eddie told us Catherine was dead." Greg mused.

Sara glanced at him with a blank expression on her face. "Maybe he was too stoned to properly check his pulse." She said frankly.

"No doubt about it." Nick said from the doorway. "Autopsy showed that his alcohol level was .45."

The other two CSIs stared. "You're kidding." Greg said.

Nick nodded. "Surprised me that he could drive a car, let alone stand."

Sara leaned back in her chair with a sigh. "I guess we should be happy that he hadn't driven off a cliff or something and really killed Catherine."

Nick seemed thoughtful.

Greg and Sara being amazing CSIs, both noticed.

"What's on your mind?" Sara asked gently, giving him a poke on the shoulder.

"Did you see Catherine's face after she shot Eddie?"

Greg and Sara both nodded.

"I think more damage's been done than she let on." He said.

Greg didn't say a word, but internally he agreed. He had seen Catherine's face. It looked like she hadn't shot an abusive ex-husband, but like she had shot someone she truly cared about. Greg didn't understand it.

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Gil Grissom was drinking for the first time in a long time. He sat in the living room of his town house. The tv was quiet and so was he. In his hand was a glass of juice laced with vodka, only it wasn't exactly laced. It was more of vodka laced with juice. He stared blankly at the black tv screen, his mind elsewhere. Gil Grissom was not the type of man to wear his feelings on his sleeve. People said he was anything but a people person. They said he was serious, and showed no emotion, but it wasn't always true. He had tried to tell the one woman he cared about how he feels, but it backfired on him. Afterward, she had hurt him further by pushing him away, and blaming a death on him. He could understand her pain, but that didn't mean he had to accept it. With a sigh of defeat, he downed the vodka in one gulp and went to pour himself another glass.

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Across the Nevada desert, Catherine Willows gazed at herself in the mirror. She had wanted to get in the shower and wash the night away, but she had caught her reflection in the mirror. She stared at it. The bruises were vivid against her apple white skin. They were everywhere. She hadn't noticed them before. Her wrists, her neck, and her arms. She closed her eyes. Never will she understand why she hurt for Eddie. He had hurt her, cheated on her, abused her, yet she still found herself shedding tears for him.

She had shot him. In her mind, it made her no difference than the murderers she's caught. She had pulled the trigger. It had been justified, and she really had no choice, but staring at his body, she realized that she would never wash his blood off her hands. She had loved him once. He was the father of her only child. He had been her husband, even though it was only for a few years. She could not change that, nor did she want to. She had learned many lessons from him, hard lessons, but lessons nonetheless.

With one shot, Catherine had transformed him from a living human being to a corpse. He was no longer Eddie Willows; he was a number on a tag in the morgue. With one shot Catherine hadn't just killed her ex-husband…she had killed a part of herself.

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I thought I would capture that whole survivor's guilt thing. If you know what I mean. Also because I don't believe that anyone can take a life and not feel a thing. Only one or two more chapters to go before I end it and start working on a sequel, I already have a bunch of ideas.


	16. Some Silence in Between

Chapter Sixteen- Some Silence In Between

Thanks to Nisha14, Picard's Angel, Daydreamer1127, Teliko. x3, DrusillaBraun, CissaMalfoy, Pandy Roxy Chick, myfairlady, starkidtw, tough cookie, and JacobedRose for their reviews!

Babe? How can you be unhappy when you have me? Lol. I'm just kidding.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Sadly…

Author's Note: Only a few more chapters. I have to say I'm kinda sad this is ending. It was really one of my favorite stories.

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Catherine arrived at work early the next night. It killed to think everything was still so normal. She still took Lindsay to school and slept for half the day before getting up and picking up Lindsay from school and taking her to dance. Lindsay was such a talented dancer. It pleased Catherine to see her daughter take her own talent and dance for a better reason than Catherine had. Her mind was in jumbles though as Lindsay trotted up to her in her ballet shoes. She had cooked dinner and then before leaving for her job, had tucked her daughter in. It was so normal, but to Catherine, it was everything.

Her first arrival at the lab was greeted with awkward silence. Most of the techs didn't know how to treat a woman who had shot her ex-husband, no matter how justifiable it was. She ignored them. It would pass in time. Nick greeted her a moment later.

"You okay?" he asked.

Catherine gazed at him for a moment before answering. "yeah fine." She said. "What we got today?"

Nick raised an eyebrow. "_We _don't got anything. You have to talk to the psychologist." He reminded her.

She rolled her eyes. "Great the shrink. Just when I thought things couldn't get worse."

Nick gave her a sympathetic smile. "Hey Cath, chill. We're all backing you up." He said, giving her a friendly hug. "We always will be." He whispered softly as he pulled away.

Catherine almost smiled. Footsteps behind her. She turned to face Grissom eye to eye.

He didn't say a word. Neither did she. Just walked past each other in the hallway. She didn't know what to say. He didn't trust himself to say anything. They walked past each other in silence. Their first since they had met each other.

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The night went by like a blur. Catherine had worked so many cases the procedure had become routine. Swabs, prints, DNA, and blood splatter. Just like that. As she made her way back into the lab to drop off her stuff, she realized that she was feeling aggravated. She shook off her thoughts as she clocked out, ready to get home to her daughter.

As she drove home, she realized that the city lights didn't calm or excite her the way they used to. She felt numb. Disconnected. Something just wasn't right, but everything was in place.

_Except Eddie. _She thought.

She would understood why she wasted tears on him, but she couldn't understand why she couldn't look at herself the same way. Her hands gripped the steering wheel tighter, her knuckles turning white. They were clean, but in her mind, they were stained in blood. Blood that she could never wash away. She had done her job that night. She been trained to shoot and to kill. She protected Grissom and her team. She did what she had to do, but she could not make peace with herself. The city lights were still flashing and Catherine found a sickening feeling in her stomach.

By the time she made it back to her house, her mind was made up. She checked up on her still sleeping daughter. Lindsay probably needed a break too from the hectic city lights. As much as she hated putting her daughter in new situations, Catherine felt the maternal instinct that this was the right choice.

She picked up the phone and dialed a number she hadn't dialed in a logn time. Three rings and a young boy's voice came on the line.

"Hey Jeremy. Can I talk to your mother?" She said softly.

A pause and a woman's voice rang out with a terse hello.

"Hey Vivian. It's your sister."

A gasp of surprise from the other line. Catherine smiled a little.

"Catherine!" Vivian cried. "It's been a while."

"Yeah." Catherine replied. "Listen, I'm thinking about going back to Montana. Just to get myself and my daughter together again. Can you hook me up with an apartment or something?"

Vivian thought for a moment. "Our old farm's for sale if you have that much cash." She said in a slight country twang, that the Las Vegas city had cured Catherine of.

"How much?"

Vivian gave the price and Catherine felt herself smile.

"Yeah I can buy it. Just gimme the number of the owner." She said.

Vivian was surprised Catherine had done so well for herself that she could afford the place, but gave her sister the number anyway.

"Thanks sis. I'll see you soon."

"Can't wait."

As Catherine hung up, she caught sight of a lace teddy that Eddie had given her during their first anniversary. She knew she made the right choice. The memories were too strong here. Too loud for either her or Lindsay to move on. They needed the peaceful country nights, even just for a little while.

She wondered how she would break the news to Gil.

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She stood before his door with a nervous look on her face. She had never felt it difficult to talk to him before. She had already broken the news to Lindsay, who was thrilled at the idea of owning a pony. Sam had already planned on taking her house and holding it for her in case she wanted to come back. Packing wasn't a big deal. Sam could get people in her house and out within two days and her stuff would be in Montana by the end of the week. The hard part was telling her team, who have become her family, that she was leaving.

She wanted to start with Grissom, but found it impossible as she stood before his door. Perhaps he wouldn't even care if she left. He had made it clear that the closeness between was gone the night before. He had ignored her. Plainly. It had hurt her more than she let on. She didn't understand why, but it was almost as bad as killing Eddie. He walked away from her.

She turned away from his door. Now it was her turn.

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Next chapter will be the last. I'll start working on the sequel right away. Sorry if this is short.


	17. Leaving Las Vegas

Chapter Seventeen- Leaving Las Vegas

AHHHH! Last chapter!

Thanks to Pandy Roxy Chick, JacobedRose, and myfairlady for their reviews.

Serge…nvm.

Disclaimer: Own nothing

Author's Note: Yeah I know I just updated, but I wanna finish this story so I can get my ideas out with the sequel. Hehe

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The rest of the week went by without her hinting at her move. Lindsay was excited, but Catherine felt apprehensive. She had tried again and again to open her mouth and let her team know that she was leaving, but she found it impossible. She almost didn't want to believe it herself. Leaving was the hardest thing to do, but at this point. It was the only thing left to do.

"Hey Catherine." Warrick greeted as she entered the lab, completely unaware of the inner turmoil that Catherine was feeling.

"Hey." She said softly. "What we got today?"

Warrick shrugged. "Suicide. The usual."

Catherine raised an eyebrow. "What's usual about suicide?"

Warrick grinned back at her, loving her sarcastic sense of humor. "You tell me."

"I couldn't say."

It was another day at the Las Vegas Crime Lab, but it seemed different to Catherine Willows. She went to work with determination to make her last day in the lab the best she could make it.

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Laughter rang out of the break room. Catherine and Greg were banging their heads to an Ipod. Each with an earphone in their ear. They were dancing on top of the table with Catherine singing at the top of her lungs. Sara and Nick were dancing on the floor, while Warrick was banging his head to the same song playing loudly on his laptop. Even Sofia and Brass joined in, fake tangoing. The only one missing was Grissom, but Catherine pushed that from her mind. She stopped dancing for a moment, and smiled at the sight of her closest friends around her. A memory etched into her mind forever.

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At the end of shift, Catherine paused outside of Grissom's office. The doors were shut and the blinds were closed. There were voices murmuring, Ecklie and Grissom. Then muffled shouts came through the glass. Catherine's cell phone rang, just as she reached for the knob.

"Mugs." Sam's voice came over the line.

"Yeah?" she replied.

"If you don't get here soon, the planes gonna leave without you."

She thanked him and hung up. She glanced at the closed door, before turning away. She walked out of the Las Vegas Crime Lab under the heavy words, _for the last time._

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Grissom called his team into his office. They were oblivious to what had happened right under their noses. To tell the truth, he hadn't seen it coming either. Sara entered first, talking and laughing with Greg while Nick and Warrick followed betting on something. He felt like the demon destroying their good mood. But part of him knew it wasn't his fault. It was Catherine's.

"Hey man…you look like someone died." Nick said.

Grissom just glared at him. The team fell into silence.

He took a deep breath and began his announcement.

"Catherine won't be working with us anymore." He said not quite believing his own words.

"You mean she's on a break right?" Nick asked, a little confused.

Grissom shook his head. "No, she left for Montana ten minutes ago."

Silence followed his words.

Sara was the first to break it. "You're kidding right?" she asked.

Grissom shook his head again. "I wish I was." With that he left the room with a stormy expression on his face, leaving his CSIs staring at his back with bewilderment.

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Sara was not in the discussion. She had gone to check her messages and e-mails unable to believe that Catheirne would just up and leave, without a word even to her. As she suspected a message was in her inbox.

_Dear Sara, _

_I know you're probably confused and angry right now, but I couldn't stay in a place filled with memories of everything that happened. I killed him and that doesn't sit well with my conscience. I'm leaving a lot of responsibility in your hands. Woman to woman, I hope you of all people understand my decision. I'm asking you for a favor though. Something I need from you more than anything else. Watch over the guys. Watch over Grissom. Keep the guys from knocking each other's teeth out when they head over hills. I need you to play my role as peacemaker from now on. As for Grissom, don't let his mind take over his heart. Keep him sane for me. Keep him human. _

_Forgive me for my choices_

_Always thinking of Vegas,_

_Catherine_

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After he left, the CSI's exchanged shocked glances. All of the unsure of what to say. Unsure of what to believe either. All of them found it hard to believe that she would leave without even saying good-bye, without even dropping a hint that they weren't going to see her again.

"Maybe she thought good-bye would be too hard." Sara mused mostly to herself.

Nick was unable to comprehend. "What about our peace of mind?" he asked.

Warrick glanced at Nick, but said nothing. Catherine had been his partner for a while. They had grown close. Her leaving without telling even him, hurt him more than he had expected, but he couldn't say he didn't understand. Good-bye would have been hard for her, but staying would have been harder after what she had to live with. What he truly could not understand was her leaving Grissom. He knew she had feelings for him as much as he had feelings for her. Yet she walked away. Just like that.

As the other discussed possible hints that could have led them to suspect something of Catherine's leave. Warrick left to talk to Grissom. He found Grissom outside, staring at the rising sun.

"You okay?" he asked, sitting down next to his boss on the curve.

"No." Grissom said bluntly.

Warrick lowered his head. "She had her reasons."

"I know, but that doesn't mean I have to understand them."

"You should try, maybe it'll ease the pain."

"I don't feel pain." Grissom argued rather stubbornly.

Warrick felt annoyance. Typical Grissom, hiding his feelings.

"Grissom, maybe it's not my place to lecture, but I don't think I can hold my tongue this time. She chose to walk, because she killed someone. She killed someone she married once, she loved once, and who she bore the daughter of. That hurt her, so she ran because it was the only thing she could do to get away from the memories. She had blood-stained hands. Blood that she couldn't wash off."

Grissom stared at him in stunned silence. He had never heard Warrick speak like this before.

"Grissom, I know you have feelings for her. It's obvious. The way she's always your first priority, the way you depended on her without even knowing it. Why can't you go after her? Why do you refuse to? Her leave is gonna make the team suffer. If you're the soul of the team, then she's the heart. She's the other half that keeps you from becoming a cold-blooded and as dead as the bodies in the morgue."

Grissom stood up, glaring at Warrick. "She made her choice. She walked away. Me going after her isn't going to change that." He said with stone cold control in his voice, but it was also laced with pain.

"Nothing is going to change that."

Fin

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Who's in tears? Lol. I hope so. That's what I was going for.


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